Subject: Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center.

Dear RWS 1301 students,

Immigration is one of the biggest issues in the United States. However, here in El Paso people
hear it more often since its a border city and it has so many immigrants coming in every year. A
lot of these immigrants may sometimes need assistance, but its not as easy to get that help for
them, as it is for residents or citizens from this nation, because they dont have the same rights
and benefits as the residents or citizens do. Thats why there are several organizations that help
this people get a solution to their different kinds of problems.
Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center is one of those many organizations, it has been
present here in El Paso for 27 years, supporting the needs of many low-income immigrants, as
well as refugees and battered women. With the help of its many lawyers and staff, Las Americas
has provided legal representation to more than 11,000 low-income immigrants from all around
the world. One of the reasons why people come to this country are because of wars and/or
repressive governments, leaving this people with the necessity to come to a new country, where
they must find a safe place to stay. Thats why Las Americas offers asylum to immigrants from
over 60 countries, such as Algeria, Dominican Republic, Bosnia, El Salvador, India, Burundi,
Mexico and Colombia.
It is difficult for battered women to sue their husbands, and even more if they are immigrants,
because they are afraid they could be deported and separated from their children. Another service
offered by Las Americas is helping these women get legal permanent residency or in other cases
by suspending their deportation, all of this through the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
This agency also has a group of women that either survived from domestic violence or have a
friend or relative that suffered from this issue. They are called Las Abejas or The Honey
Bees, this group of women go out to the community to inform people about domestic violence
and the alternatives for the victims.
Las Americas also gives community members, students, and attorneys an opportunity to
volunteer. The community members help by answering phones, greeting clients and handling
administrative work, while law students and social workers have the opportunity to do their
internships at the center, and the attorneys, paralegal or legal assistants provide their services to
help the many indigent immigrants. All the information needed to apply to be a volunteer can be
found on their website, which is very broad and does not only have that information but also has
the many ways to contact them, how to subscribe to get news and updates, their events, the
services offered, and testimonies from people that have acquired help from their center.
Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center may be contacted at their office on 1500 E. Yandell
Dr. El Paso, TX 79902, by phone (915) 544-5126, by fax (915) 544-4041, via e-mail at
info@las-americas.org or on their website at http://las-americas.org.
Sincerely,
Emma Diaz